Perceptions Echo
by Random1377
Summary: An echo
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: the rights to all anime series depicted in this story are the excusive properties of the original creators. Should any of the copyright holders request it, this story will be removed from the web immediately.

Perceptions

(Love Hina Echo)

Part 2 – Questions and Such

By Random1377

Bright and sunny – those were the only words Motoko could think of to describe the gorgeous weather in downtown Tokyo-3. She guessed that the temperature was a warm 85 or so, with a nice, refreshing breeze to keep things from getting too hot and sweaty. Casting a sideways glance at her companions, Motoko ran one hand through her hair wondering once more if she had perhaps made a mistake in winning the duel with her sister.

_Wouldn't be so bad,_ she mused as the other residents of the Hinata Sou laughed and joked with their manager, _Keitaro's really not such a bad guy. I can think of worse things than being his wife, I suppose…_

Pushing these thoughts aside, she glanced around at the towering skyscrapers that thrust boldly up into the azure firmament. It was amazing, she thought, that these steel and glass fingers could be retracted down into the ground, turning the modern city into an impenetrable fortress to fend off the strange, unearthly beings known worldwide as 'angels.'

Perhaps more amazing, however, was the fact that she and her friends had remained relatively unscathed by the tumult. Somehow they were comforted by Grandma Hina's assurance that they were in the safe hands of the organization known as NERV.

_I suppose we have much to be thankful for,_ she mused as Shinobu rushed to a storefront to point out a cute dress to the other residents, _All of our families are still alive… all of our friends… Hinata really must be a charmed place to allow us this sort of peace of mind. And our dorm is one of the only buildings that survived the Impact without any damage!_

She cast a sidelong glance at Keitaro. He had been a bit distracted since they had arrived in the city, and when they passed the little art museum he had told them about when he got back from his last visit two weeks prior, Motoko would have sworn that she heard him sigh wistfully.

"Hey, hey!" Su said suddenly. "Look at that car!"

Everyone turned their attention to where the gaijin girl was pointing. "It's… blue," Naru muttered as the car in question went speeding past.

"It's a Renault Alpine A310," Su said excitedly. "Rear-mounted V6, double-barreled carburetor, four-speed manual gearbox," she grinned proudly, "top speed of 210 kilometers per hour."

"And," Kitsune piped in suddenly, "it's blue."

Rolling her eyes, Naru muttered, "From mechanized, hundred-foot tall turtles to pre-impact sports cars, she knows it all."

Everyone jumped as the car suddenly screeched to a halt, swerving over to the curb and scaring an old couple into stumbling back out of the way.

"What the…?"

The driver's side door flew open, followed a moment later by the passenger's side, and two women stepped out of the car. Or rather, Motoko corrected mentally, one woman and a teenage girl. Both appeared irritated. The source of the older woman's annoyance was unclear, though the younger girl was obviously annoyed at _her_ from the looks she was casting at her elder.

"Look at that dress," Kitsune mumbled as the duo started walking down the street in their direction. "I think I've got one just like it."

"Yeah," Naru quipped, "but she's got the legs for it."

Kitsune looked offended. "Hey, I've got good legs!" she protested, hiking her own skirt up to her thigh and making several passersby faint from nasal blood loss. "See?"

Naru yawned. "Ok, ok," she admitted, "your legs are fine – but you're at least a cup size smaller than her, and-"

"Hey."

All conversation came to an abrupt halt as the woman in the short skirt stopped directly in front of them rather than walking past, as they had all expected.

Motoko guessed that the woman was in her late twenties, whereas the girl at her side was no more than sixteen. Both were attractive, though the older woman was a bit closer to what Motoko considered beautiful, with long, purple-hued black hair, piercing, chocolate eyes, and a body that guys at her high school would have deemed 'tasty.' The girl, on the other hand, had shoulder-length red hair and crystal blue eyes, and clearly had some foreign blood in her. She was pretty, but when held up against her older companion, she paled quite noticeably in comparison.

Naru, of course, instantly went on the offensive. "Is there something you need?" she asked bluntly, clearly annoyed at having her pleasant shopping excursion interrupted.

"Not with you," the woman said dismissively, keeping her attention oddly focused on a very uncomfortable-looking Keitaro.

"Misato," the teenager mumbled, "you're making a scene."

Ignoring the girl, the woman swept the collected Hinata Sou residents with her eyes before bringing her attention back to Keitaro. "Well," she said coolly, "I guess this explains why you never called me."

Expecting an embarrassed, 'you've got me mixed up with someone else' or something similar, the Hinata Sou girls nearly fell flat on their faces as Keitaro quickly stammered, "It's not what it looks like! I… these are my tenants…"

"Your tenants?" the woman echoed, folding her arms over her impressive chest. "So, what – that dorm you run is an _all_-_girls_ dorm?"

"Yeah!" Keitaro exclaimed eagerly. "That's exactly-"

The woman's scowl cut him off. "Who," she asked icily, "would put a single man in charge of a dorm full of underage girls? You're going to have to come up with something better than that, Keitaro."

Kitsune leaned closer to Motoko. "How does she know his name?" she wondered, clearly unable (as they all were) to accept the idea that this older, unbelievably attractive woman was actually talking to Keitaro.

About not calling her.

For a date.

It just didn't fit.

"M-my grandmother owns the Hinata Sou," Keitaro blurted, speaking so fast his words nearly ran together. "Hinata is just outside Tokyo-3 and I wanted to go to Tokyo-3 University but I failed three times and finally got in and my parents kicked me out and I didn't have anywhere to go and my grandmother told me I could come stay with her but she didn't tell me that the old bathhouse had been turned into a girls dorm and when I got there she had left me a letter that said I had to manage it for her if I wanted to stay there and the girls didn't want me to at first but I've been there two years and… and…"

Misato simply stared as his long, rambling explanation finally ran out of steam.

Before she could say anything, however, the redhead at her side shook her head and muttered, "A three time ronin? What a loser! Can we go, Misato? Why would you want to waste your time with a dumbass like this?"

Immediately, the younger girl had the dislike of every one of the Hinata Sou's residents.

"What makes you think _you're_ so smart?" Naru demanded, stepped forward and glaring down at the feisty little girl. "You're what, twelve? You should show a little more respect for your-"

"I'm fourteen," the redhead cut in, boldly meeting the other girl's eyes, "and what makes me think I'm smarter than your dumbass manager over there is that I still have notes on all the classes he's about to take – because I finished them _last year!_"

Naru snorted dismissively. "Yeah right," she said acidly, "like we're supposed to believe you finished college at-"

"She did, actually," Misato interrupted, clearly deciding that she had been silent for too long, "and with top grades. Asuka's the youngest graduate of the Berlin Academy in nearly a century – but anyway…" she nodded at Keitaro, "was he telling the truth?"

From the look on Naru's face, she clearly did not believe that the snotty little girl at Misato's side was even a kindergarten graduate, but she shook her head and refocused herself on the older woman's question. "Yes," she hesitated, taking in the purple-haired woman's keen, watchful eyes before adding, "ma'am. Everything he said is true."

Asuka snorted, looking at Keitaro with obvious disgust before turning on her heel and announcing, "I'll be in the car."

As she stalked off, Misato turned to Keitaro. "Well that explains that," she said coolly, "but I'm still not happy with you, Keitaro. You know, I don't give my number to just anyone…"

Keitaro blushed as she trailed off. "I, er… I washed it…"

"Huh?"

"The piece of paper with your number," he explained awkwardly, "it was in my pants when I washed them… and it got ruined."

There was a moment of profound silence before Sarah muttered, "Wow, I think that crabby girl was right."

"I tried to find you though," Keitaro said quickly, "I called… I called five different office buildings looking for you, since you said you did office work, but none of them had a Misato working there, and I didn't know your last name, and do you _know_ how many Misatos are in the phone book?" His shoulders slumped as everyone stared at him. His voice grew very soft as he miserably sighed, "I really did try…"

Motoko glanced at the woman, frowning as she noticed just how curvy she really was. _And she's bold, too…_

As if to confirm this thought, the woman suddenly flashed a dazzling smile. "This time," she said, slowly reaching into her jacket's inner pocket – and doubling the size of her cleavage in the process, "why don't you give me… _your_ number?"

Nobody said a word as she offered Keitaro a pen and a small notepad, her eyes surveying them to (Motoko was quite sure) assess their threat potential as Keitaro carefully wrote out his number.

"I keep this with me all the time," the woman informed him as she tucked it back into her pocket. She winked as she added, "And my roommate always checks my pockets before he puts stuff in the wash, so… I'll be talking to you soon."

As she turned away and headed back to her sports car, Motoko – and all of the other girls – focused their attention on Keitaro.

_This,_ Motoko mused as the young man looked around with wide, terrified eyes, _is going to get ugly._

( 0 0 0 )

Keitaro collapsed into his bed with a weak, defeated groan. There had been… questions, when Misato had left, or perhaps 'an interrogation' would be a more suitable phrase, as the girls of the Hinata Sou had practically bombarded him with demands for more information, harrying him all the way from the shopping district, to the train station, up to his very own door.

And none of them seemed to believe that he knew so very little about the purple-haired woman or that all the two of them had shared was a simple drink and some uncomfortable conversation.

The worst aspect of the entire, screwed up questioning session was the look of hurt confusion on Su's face – as if she simply could NOT wrap her mind around the idea that Keitaro was actually a grown man with a social life… a social life that might not include her, or one of the other girls at the Hinata Sou.

From Shinobu, he expected it, but he had no idea that Su saw him that way.

_And of COURSE Kitsune just HAD to ask if I was sleeping with her,_ he thought miserably, _I thought Shinobu was going to faint when she heard that._

But Naru had not hit him, and neither had Motoko – and that had to count for _something,_ he figured. Unless they were waiting until after he was asleep to spring their attack, of course, in which case Keitaro was doomed.

He flinched as someone knocked gently on his door.

_Here we go again…_

"C-come in."

The door slid a few inches open, and Shinobu's eye appeared at the crack. "Are… are you alone, senpai?" she asked timidly.

Sitting up in his bed, Keitaro wondered, "Who else would be in here?"

"I don't know," Shinobu whispered, slipping into his room and closing the door behind her, "I just… didn't want to assume…"

It made Keitaro feel vaguely ill to watch the normally vivacious girl fidgeting with her skirt and staring down at the floor. Needlessly, he said, "Well, I'm all alone."

They lapsed into silence, Keitaro waiting to see what Shinobu would say, Shinobu leaning against his door and staring down at the floorboards between her feet. Several times, she opened her mouth to say something, but invariably she simply closed it once more, unable to find the words to express herself.

Finally, she nodded to herself and lifted her head, straightening her back and walking deliberately over to Keitaro's bedside. Once within range, she clenched her hands together and uttered three, simple words.

"Su's… not eating."

"Su… huh?"

"She's not eating," Shinobu repeated. "I made her favorite… but she won't touch it. She won't even eat a banana – and you know she'll _always_ eat a banana! I'm getting really worried, and-"

Keitaro held his hands up. "Just take it easy," he said quickly. "It's just one meal, Shinobu… she's probably just… not hungry…"

He trailed off as Shinobu simply stared at him.

"…I'll go talk to her."

"I umm… I don't think she wants to see you…"

In spite of himself, Keitaro found that he was getting a little upset. "Isn't that kinda… childish?"

Averting her eyes, Shinobu whispered, "She _is_… kind of a child, Senpai – at least compared to… to that woman…"

Keitaro rose to his feet. "You know I don't see you like that, right?" he said awkwardly. "I mean, yeah, you and Su are… are pretty young, but I've always thought of both of you as-"

"No you haven't."

The sadness in Shinobu's voice was so palpable that Keitaro found himself with no reply.

"But… but I understand," she added, giving him a soft, hesitant smile.

"It's… you know, it's not like you umm… lost, you know," Keitaro said, dismayed at the desperation in Shinobu's voice… and his. "I mean, I'm not like, married to her or anything – we've only gone out once, and she hasn't even call-"

Both jumped as the phone down in the foyer began to ring.

Shinobu gave him a sickly smile.

"You should get that," she said, sniffing a bit as she turned and opened the door. "I'll, umm… talk to Su, ok?"

Cursing the timing, Keitaro said, "It's probably not even her, you know…"

Looking at him over her shoulder, Shinobu weakly said, "You still need to answer it."

And so, Keitaro did. As he hurried down the stairs, half of him hoped it would be Misato, and half of him hoped it wouldn't. If it was her, there was a very good chance that she would want to see him again, and knowing that she wanted to be with him – even if it was only to date a little – made him feel warm and happy. On the other hand, if it wasn't her and she never called him again, everything at the Hinata Sou would go back to the way it was, and no one's feelings would be hurt.

As it turned out, it was just a telemarketer on the line, so Keitaro was left in suspense.

Until the following day.

Continued…

Pre-read was done by MacBeth2001 and Hawker-748.


	2. Red Wine and ‘Good’ Dates

Disclaimer: the rights to all anime series depicted in this story are the excusive properties of the original creators. Should any of the copyright holders request it, this story will be removed from the web immediately.

Perceptions

(Love Hina Echo)

Part 4 – Red Wine and 'Good' Dates

By Random1377

Keitaro toyed with his fork and glanced around at the décor of the restaurant he was in, studiously trying not to notice how quickly his date drained her glass of wine. "S-so," he said nervously, "do you come here often or…"

Misato smiled as he trailed off, setting her empty glass down and motioning the waiter over for a refill. "You know, we're already on a date… you don't have to keep dropping corny lines."

"Sorry."

Lacing her fingers together, Misato rested her chin on the backs of her hands and gazed steadily at the uncomfortable young man. "And you don't have to keep apologizing," she said. "If you had any idea how cute you are when you say and do stuff like that, you'd go out of your way to say stupid things and trip over your own feet."

The fork spun from Keitaro's fingers and dropped to the floor with loud clatter.

"Then again, it must be hell keeping up with the dishes at your place."

Keitaro laid his hands flat on the table, staring down at the backs of his hands with a look of guilty accusation – as if they were responsible for making him look like an idiot. Looking up was a dangerous proposition, since (somehow) several of Misato's buttons had come undone during dinner, offering him a tantalizing view into her shirt. It was not a bad view, he decided as he stole his fifth peek, but he was still unsure of what she had in mind. She came on so much stronger than any of the girls at the Hinata Sou that he had no real idea of what to do or say when he was with her.

"Tell me something about yourself, Keitaro," Misato asked suddenly. "I know you manage a dorm full of underage girls and you're trying to get into college – and that you like art – but beside that, I don't know anything."

"They're not… all underage," Keitaro mumbled, his fingers twitching as if they longed to grab his spoon. "But, umm, I don't really have time to have a hobby or anything like that since I'm always doing something for the Sou or for school."

Misato nudged his wine glass closer to him, encouraging him to take a drink. Once he had swallowed, she softly asked, "So does that mean you don't have time for a girlfriend?"

"I don't know," Keitaro said awkwardly, "I've never had one. I don't… I don't know how much time it takes…"

Laying her hand on top of his, Misato said, "I'm pretty low maintenance."

"O-oh…"

Keitaro stared into Misato's eyes, painfully aware of her slightly open shirt and her flower-scented perfume and the gentle pressure of her fingertips on the back of his hand. It was a powerful combination, and though he was scared as all hell, Keitaro felt himself leaning forward in his chair, dizzy with the realization that the gorgeous woman sitting across from him might be on the verge of closing the distance between them and giving him a non-accidental, willing kiss.

"Keitaro," Misato said quietly. "Your… forearm is in your spaghetti."

"Wha-aww, man!"

The moment, obviously, was lost. The rest of the meal was spent in quiet, light conversation, but Keitaro could not keep his eyes off of Misato. From the increasingly broad grin on her face, though, he could tell that she was enjoying the attention. He reassessed her looks every five minutes, finding them well above the average, and causing his brain to lock in a repeating cycle of doubt and uncertainty. Several other items were knocked over, but Misato always managed to avoid getting anything on her, and as they stepped out of the restaurant it was Misato that held the door for Keitaro and held her arm out for him to take.

"They… they'll never let you back in there you know," he observed as they began to walk down the street towards the woman's car. "I think I ruined that tablecloth."

"I'm sure they have something that takes wine out of fabric," Misato assured him, "don't sweat it. Did you _like_ the wine, Keitaro? You didn't have much."

Keitaro chuckled weakly. "I'm not much of a drinker," he admitted. "I get… silly if I have too much."

_Whereas you,_ he added, recalling the number of glasses the woman had knocked back, _drink more than Kitsune… and you're barely even slurring your words._

Arching an eyebrow, Misato said, "Silly, huh? I'd kind of like to see that some day." She stopped and leaned against a nearby building. "So," she said casually, "am I… dropping you off, or did you have something else in mind for the rest of the evening?"

It took several tries for Keitaro to successfully swallow. "I, umm, well you probably shouldn't d-drive right now," he observed. "Is there anything else you _want_ to do around here?"

Misato arched an eyebrow and looked around. "In this neighborhood?" she asked coolly. "I'd rather not, really… it's a little dirty."

Keitaro looked up, his face going instantly crimson as he realized that they had strolled into a small district of love hotels. "I didn't m-"

"Keitaro."

"Y-yeah?"

A pleasant shiver ran down Keitaro's spine as Misato put her hands on his chest and leaned closer to him. "What I meant," she whispered, "was that I don't like these places." Leaning closer still, she concluded, "But my apartment isn't far from here…"

"Is… is that right…?" Keitaro breathed, nearly melting as Misato slid her hands up and clasped them gently behind his neck.

Misato nodded and wet her lips, easing herself closer to Keitaro and tilting her head slightly to the side. "Would you like to go there, Keitaro?"

There was a profound silence as Keitaro desperately tried to un-stick his brain.

_Is this our first date?_ he thought with sudden, random clarity. _I mean, we went out for coffee… was that a date, or was it just a meeting? Is this a second date? Should… should we even be TALKING about stuff like this yet…?_

Keitaro closed his eyes as Misato drew him in close, his heart racing in his chest as the woman's lips barely brushed against his. "We could stay at one of these places if you'd like to," she breathed. "I like my own bed better, but if you're in that big of a rush, I don't mi-"

"Let's go to a movie!"

Misato blinked as the young man slipped out of her arms. "A… huh?"

Plastering a huge smile on his face, Keitaro said, "There's a movie theatre right over there! Let's go see a show, huh?"

_Whaaaaat_ _am I doing? _he thought, uttering a huge, booming laugh as Misato gaped at him. _She said she wanted to… and I'm just… God, what is WRONG with me? I just don't-_

"That's an adult theatre, Keitaro."

Ketiaro paled. "Is… is that right…?"

Misato cocked her head to the side. "You're a funny guy," she mused. "I mean, if you'd rather watch it than do it yourself, that's cool, but umm… I'd rather participate, you know? Unless you want to do that and _then_ that, because, you know, whatever gets you going, I guess…"

Resisting the urge to slap himself in the forehead, Keitaro managed to mumble, "I… I just meant a normal, regular movie… without… without sex…"

"Should I have you home by eleven, too?" Misato asked, pursing her lips as she regarded the flustered manager. "All the children's matinees are over by four in the afternoon, Keitaro. In case you hadn't noticed, this isn't really a kid-friendly city – and I doubt you'll find a movie without some kind of sex or violence in it these days."

Keitaro's voice was almost pleading as he said, "I meant I don't want to see a p-porno. I just… wanted to see a movie."

Shrugging, Misato muttered, "Well you could have just said that, you know."

To Keitaro's immense relief, she took his hand and led him out of the red-light district.

"You're so jumpy," she murmured as they walked. "You really should loosen up, Keitaro."

Keitaro opened his mouth to reply.

"Especially if you're going to be spending the night."

Keitaro closed his mouth.

_Why am I fighting this?_ he thought, stealing a glance at his date as she put her arm around his waist and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. _She… really wants to… to…_

The thought trailed off as Misato suddenly came up short and whispered, "Ah screw it."

Keitaro's eyes widened in shock as Misato turned to face him, putting her hands on the sides of his head and pressing her lips to his in a quick, passionate kiss.

"There," she declared, releasing him and letting him stumble back a step. "It's out of the way – now we won't have to worry about whether or not our first kiss will be awkward."

Taking his hand, she led him into the movie theatre.

She did not notice that his face had frozen into a mask of surprise and disbelief until halfway through the movie… and then she simply smiled and gently pushed his gaping mouth closed before resting her head on his shoulder and wondering how she could get Asuka and Shinji out of the apartment for an hour or two.

( 0 0 0 )

"I'm… home…"

Keitaro's knees felt like they were made of jell-o as he pushed the door to the Hinata Sou open.

"Keitarrrrrooooo!"

"Whuff!"

The air was forced from his lungs as Su (who had clearly been crouched in anticipation of his return) hit him low and hard, her shoulder connecting with his solar plexus in an open-field tackle that would have made any football coach tear up with pride.

"Welcome home!"

"Th…anks…"

As he was flat on his back, Keitaro could not do much to prevent Su from leaning forward and pressing her nose against the side of his neck. "Uck," she complained, "you smell like hussy! You better go take a hot shower, or Naru's gonna pound you flat!"

Though he did not doubt this fact, Keitaro was not in the mood for a hot shower. A cold one, sure, but a hot one? Not a good idea.

_Yeah, I think I've had enough hot for one night,_ he thought tiredly. _That… wow, she's… wow…_

It was strange, he decided, to think that he had 'escaped with his purity' when he left Misato's apartment. Though he had tried his best to get her to understand that he wasn't quite ready to take that step with her yet, Keitaro had found himself sitting in Misato's kitchen, looking around at the dated appliances while his date had a none-too-quiet argument with the redheaded girl who had called him stupid just a few days prior.

The idea that he had been about to get lucky kept going over and over in his mind, and it would take several days for him to fully understand why he had mumbled, "Gotta go, see ya later," and slipped out of the kitchen while Misato was still arguing. And in the ultimate twist of fate, now he was on his back with a girl straddling him and complaining that he smelled like another woman.

_God hates me._

"What the hell are you two doing?"

_Really… really hates me._

"N-Naru," Keitaro stammered, craning his neck to look past Su's shoulder. "We weren't… doing anything, really!"

"Now you're in trouble," Su (unnecessarily) informed him, glancing over her shoulder to tell Naru, "Keitaro was out sleeping around!"

Naru stared at the younger girl for a moment… then slowly turned away. "Well he _is_ a man, after all."

"But… but Naru!" the tiny foreigner stammered. "I thought you… you, ummm…"

Keitaro averted his eyes. He had never seen Su at a loss for words – ever. It made her seem younger somehow, and Keitaro realized with a flash of insight that dating Misato had far deeper implications than he had first guessed.

"Don't leave the front door open all night," Naru said quietly. "I'm going to bed."

A cold, icy feeling stabbed into Keitaro's stomach. "W-wait," he blurted. "Naru, wait, I…"

He fumbled for words, but nothing seemed to fit. It was not as if he _wasn't_ seeing Misato, after all. He hadn't slept with her, but (if Misato had her way) that was just a matter of time, so what could he say to Naru to get her to stop walking away?

And did he _want_ her to stop walking away?

"_Stop!"_

Naru looked over her shoulder, blinking in surprise as Keitaro – with Su still clinging to him – rose to his feet.

"Don't…don't be like that," he pleaded, barely aware of what he was saying as Naru stared at him and Su slowly climbed off of his side. "I'm still here, you know – and I'm not going anywhere. I'm not…" he drew a deep breath, trying to get hold of himself, "I'm not that… shallow, ok? I like her – I do, I'm not going to lie… but I like you too, Naru, and… and I like everyone here at the Sou. I… I don't know if it means anything to you, but I didn't do anything with her tonight."

Naru turned away, and from her tone Keitaro could tell she was forcing herself to speak as she said, "It wouldn't be my business if you did, you know."

"But-"

Keitaro staggered as Su abruptly threw her arms around him. "I told you!" she said triumphantly. "I told you he wasn't that kind of guy!"

Gently loosening Su's grip, Keitaro ventured, "You do believe me, right Naru?"

Keeping her back to him, Naru slowly nodded. "I believe you, Keitaro," she whispered. "And if you say you won't leave, I believe that too. Just remember that no one else can run the Hinata Sou, ok? You… you have an obligation to be here, you know."

Smiling weakly, Keitaro put his hand on Su's head. "I know. I won't let you down – any of you."

No, he decided, he wouldn't leave. He liked Misato, and perhaps it would grow to be more some day… but after their date, and the reactions of his two tenants, Keitaro decided that he wasn't quite ready to be what she wanted him to be.

_She'll understand,_ he thought, allowing a joyful Su to drag him into the Hinata Sou. _We can just… let things cool off a bit, and then… then we'll see._

Continued…

Pre-read on this chapter was done by Hawker-748, who helped me salvage the trainwreck that was the original ending.


End file.
